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It may seem fairly obvious, but it’s still worth stating: Formula 1 is a very loud event. For the team racers, for the pit crew, and yes, even for the attendees in the stands. In a perfect world, everyone would be equipped with industrial-strength headphones before standing directly next to a track with some of the loudest cars in existence roaring by for two-plus hours. But racers want to lock into a performance-minded focus without clunky headgear, and we doubt that the stylish race-goers we spotted at the Miami Grand Prix would don them either.
Enter: Loop Earplugs, the cool kid on the block of hearing health. They’ve teamed up with McLaren Racing, one of the most storied teams in Formula 1 history, to give their team members precise control over their sound environment with a limited-edition pair of their innovative Switch 2 earplugs. But while focus and recovery can be a vital tool for elite performance, even spectators sitting trackside can benefit from Loop’s stylish blend of harsh decibel reduction and sleek design.
“When you’re in the grandstands, every car that passes by hits about 110 decibels,” Loop Earplugs co-founder Maarten Bodewes tells Rolling Stone. “What we do at festivals is protect people’s ears, but we also wanted to protect them at a Formula 1 race, too. I remember when I drove a race car for the first time, we put ear plugs in. When I drive a motorcycle, I also put ear plugs in.”
McLaren F1 Team x Loop Switch 2 Earplugs
$64.95
Buy Now on Loop
Pros: Slimmer, more comfortable design than original, no batteries required, great option for conversations and watching races
Cons: Hard to adjust in ear without toggling modes, at higher volumes the difference between modes is less noticeable
You’ve probably seen Loop all over your social feeds, and in the ears of fellow festival attendees and influencers at this point — but their limited-edition McLaren F1 Team x Loop Switch 2 earbuds aim to go beyond music and get you (and the drivers) ready for race day. By combining features from each of their flagship plugs, these let you “switch” between levels (called “modes”) of volume control: “Quiet” (a 26-dB cut), “Experience” (a 23-dB cut) designed to “preserve rich sound,” and “Engage” (a 20-dB cut) intended to soften ambient noise while clarifying speech.
Since 1 in 3 people are regularly exposed to loud environmental noise that could impact their hearing (even if that impact does come from watching a thrilling, high-octane race), Loop has really unlocked the code over the past few years to wide-spread usage. Simply by looking like the fashionable cousin of the best wireless earbuds out there and not a lame, foam plug, they’ve already convinced the next generation of front row head-bangers to adopt them as part of their latest concert fit — so naturally, appealing to F1 fans was only a matter of time.
It was also a fitting partnership for Bodewes too, who compared the level of detail in Loop’s plugs to that of a McLaren race car. “If you think about Formula 1 and how the racers need to focus while they’re driving, that emphasis on focus felt compatible to us. If you look at our Switch 2, I would say it’s the most engineered product we’ve ever made, with filters and springs against each other. Some of our team visited [McLaren’s] factory in the U.K., and the attention to detail that they put in their parts, where every item has to be perfect, that was incredibly relatable.”
While Loop offers nine different styles of earplugs (and they all provide some level of noise reduction), we wanted to push the Loop Switch 2 to its limits at the Miami Grand Prix race. Could I hold a conversation during the pit walk while drills were whirring from the garages? Would I be able to understand the announcer even as the cars sped by on the track? Would they look cool or dorky with my meticulously-planned race day fit? Here’s how it went.
For comparison, I’ve worn both the Loop Switch 2 and Loop Experience 2 earplugs regularly at concerts and music festivals for the past year. One of my major gripes with the Experience 2 was that it was sometimes hard to understand conversations with folks even standing right next to me in the crowd (no one loves having to yell “WHAT?” repeatedly and then just nod and chuckle in defeat). The Switch 2 solved this problem almost completely, and I could chat with my neighbor pretty well on the balcony above the track with the plugs in while set on “Engage” mode during the race. There was also noticeably (mercifully) more sound dampening when I switched to “Quiet” and “Experience” modes during the Porsche races, which are exponentially louder cars.
Loop recently redesigned the aforementioned “Switch” on the Switch 2, a mechanical dial on the outer rim of the circular plug that’s more tactile and intuitive when it comes to switching between modes without having to remove the earplugs entirely. One of the major selling points here is that unlike, say, Apple’s new Hearing Protection feature that’s been recently integrated into their AirPods Pro 2, the Switch 2 is fully manual — no batteries, apps or required. That grab-and-plug convenience is unbeatable, especially when it comes to spending all day in the stands where chargers might not be readily available. And yes, they look way better than wearing an AirPod in during a social event, which could read as “nobody talk to me”. “It’s hard to miss that ‘McLaren Orange’ on a track,” adds Bowedes.
Buy mclaren f1 x loop switch 2 earplugs
Making the earplug, as a tool, more attractive, is as baked-in a feature as hearing health — not just for race-goers, but for the Formula 1 drivers themselves. “We want to normalize it to the point where you think ‘hey, there’s a loud noise, and when I put [Loop Earplugs] in, I’m more at ease,’” says Bowedes. “When you think of people in motor sports, sometimes it’s super loud in their area and they want to protect their ears. They want to be able to focus and log themselves out. You might see some of the drivers there before a race, and they’re really in the zone. Then maybe, when they go out to party afterwards, they might pop them in to lower the noise a little bit, too. [Laughs]”
While attending the Miami Grand Prix, I didn’t find there to be that much of a difference between “Engage” and “Experience” modes on the Switch 2 when viewing the race from a reasonable distance away from the track. But sticking with “Experience” mostly did the trick — this is straight engine noise we’re talking here, so it’s easier to tune out a little versus when you’re at a concert where you’re still trying to understand vocal lyrics and instrumental licks. The only time I felt the need to turn on full “Quiet” mode was when I was exiting the lot walking directly next to the track during an F1 Academy race.
While we’re fiends for the rush of a live race, the true value of the Switch 2 is in its ability to be a “quiet bubble” solution for commuting to work, relaxing at home, working in a cafe — basically anywhere there’s noise. It’s undeniably clutch for drivers who want to protect their hearing, or just focus before (and after) a race. With a discreet yet stylish new design, and no batteries, they’re a huge “win”, on and off the track.
Speaking of a “win”: both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris swept the opening two races of the year for McLaren Racing, starting the 2025 season strong. Hopefully this winning streak continues, with McLaren F1 Team x Loop earplugs at the ready for that wonderful, celebratory roar of the crowd.
